How Trains Across Europe Changed the Way I Think About Logistics

Before I spent time in Europe, I didn’t think much about trains. In the US, they’re usually seen as second-tier transport, slow, inconvenient, and mostly forgotten unless you’re in a major city. But in my time living in Germany and traveling around Europe, trains have become part of my everyday life. Not just for long-distance trips, but for getting across town or even to another country.

And yeah, the first thing people will tell you is that “trains in Europe are always on time.” That’s not true. Especially in Germany. Delays are common. I missed a few connections and spent more time on cold platforms than I planned to.

But even with the delays, the system works. And that’s what stuck with me.

Trains are integrated into everyday life in a way I hadn’t experienced before. You don’t need to drive to a remote station or jump through security hoops. The schedules are frequent enough that if you miss one, another is usually coming soon. Information is easy to find. Transferring between trains, trams, and buses is intuitive. And most stations are in the middle of cities, not on the outskirts, so you step off the train and you’re already where you need to be.

The delays were frustrating, sure. But the fact that so many people still rely on trains, every day, says something about the resilience of the system. Even when it’s not perfectly on time, it still beats driving or catching a budget flight from a faraway airport.

What changed for me wasn’t just how I get from point A to B, it was how I think about logistics. Not as a rigid, perfectly timed operation, but as a flexible network. A system that’s useful even when things go a little sideways.

In school, logistics often gets framed in terms of efficiency, optimization, and minimal error. But riding trains across Europe reminded me that real systems don’t have to be perfect to be effective. What matters more is whether they’re intuitive, accessible, and designed for people, not just performance metrics.

I still roll my eyes when a train is late. But now I ask: does the system give me options? Can I adapt? Is it built for everyday use, not just best-case scenarios?

In Europe, even the imperfect train system changed how I see what a well-designed network can look like.

Josh H

References:

Deutsche Bahn. (2024). Punctuality: On-Time Performance. Retrieved from https://ibir.deutschebahn.com/2023/en/combined-management-report/product-quality-and-digitalization/the-customer-is-at-the-center-of-our-actions/punctuality/

Eurostat. (2024). Railway passenger transport statistics – quarterly and annual data. Retrieved from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Railway_passenger_transport_statistics_-_quarterly_and_annual_data